Indexing means



Feb- 1, 1956 D. D. GAITHER ETAL 3,232,603

INDEXING MEANS Filed May 23, 1962 United States Patent C) 3,232,603INDEXING MEANS Donald D. Gaither, La Mirada, and Kenneth W. Bogardus,

Anaheim, Calif., asslgnors to .lack A. Resnick, Pasadena, Calif.

Filed May 23, 1962, Ser. No. 197,828 8 Ciaims. (Cl. 269-315) Thisinvention relates to indexing means and more particularly to die pressstops used in indexing stock in a die press for creasing and/or cuttingthe stock.

At this time the present invention inds its widest use in die presses.In such cases a steel rule cutting and/or creasing die is held in achase anchored to the base plate of the press. Then the stock, e.g., asheet of cardboard or leather, is located on the press platen. Byclosing the platen against the base-held die, the stock is shaped andcreased as desired.

Previously it has been the practice to index the stock on the platen bymeans of small wooden blocks which are glued or otherwise anchored tothe press. Such wooden die press stocks have the disadvantage that theyare time consuming to make and apply. Further they are versatile andtherefore, are quite often custom made for the particular stock withwhich they are to be used.

The wooden die stocks have an additional disadvantage that the stockwill not slide freely against them, and therefore it is necessary to waxsuch stocks before use. The time consumed in such waxing adds to thecost of operation.

Accordingly it is a major object of this invention to provide improvedindexing means.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved low cost diepress stop.

A further object of this invention is to provide a versatile die pressstop.

Still another object of this invention is to provide a die press stopwhich can be inexpensively manufactured of long lasting plastic.

A still further object of this invention is to provide an improved diepress stop having a removable lip for retaining stock adjacent theplaten.

It is another object of this invention to provide a die press stop whichcan be quickly installed on the platen of the press. It is a furtherobject of this invention `to provide a die press stop which canaccommodate a wide range of stock thickness.

Other and further objects of this invention will become apparent in thedetailed description below of one preferred embodiment of our inventionwhen taken in conjunction with the attached drawings, wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a plan view of a platen illustrating the use of die pressstops of our invention;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged fragmentary, partial crosssectional view takenalong line 2 2 in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary partial cross-sectional view taken along line3-3 in FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a pictorial view of the die press stop shown in FIGURE 2 asseen from below and to one side; and,

FIGURE 5 is a pictorial view of the die press stop in FIGURE 2 with thecap thereof separated.

Referring now to FIGURE 1 there is shown a platen which customarily is aheavy plate of metal on which the stock to be processed is located. Inthis case, two pieces of rectangular stock 11, e.g., cardboard, islocated on the platen and properly indexed by plurality of die pressstops thereon.

To this end a pair of die press stops 12 and 13 are anchored to theplaten 10 at left edge 14 of the platen. Similarly a pair of die pressstops 16 and 17 are anchored 3,232,693 Patented Feb. l, 1966 to the faceof the platen 10 immediately adjacent rear edge 18 of the platen. Withthis arrangement the operator stands in front of front edge 19 of theplaten llt)` and urges the stock 11 against the respective stops 1'2,13, 16 and 17 to properly index the stock.

At this point, the press is closed and the steel rule cutting andcreasing die carried by the base performs its intended function, e.g.,cutting out a portion of the stock along phantom line 22.

It should be noted that normally the stock is not intentionally disposedon the platen such as the stock 1.1 is disposed on the platen It?. Theparticular orientation of the stock 11 and the shape of the cut asindicated by the phantom line 22 are to illustrate the versatility ofdie press stops embodying the present invention. This versatility willbe alluded to further in the specilication below after the illustratedpreferred embodiment of our invention has been described.

Referring now to the FIGURES 2 to 5, the die press stop 16 will bedescribed in detail. The die press stops 12, 13 and 17 are substantiallythe same. However, it should be noted that the cap of the die press stop17 has been removed for a purpose which will be discussed below.

Preferably the die press stops of the present invention are made of aplastic such as polyethylene because it takes the abrasion of the stockvery well. Other materials such as nylon also can be used. The die pressstop 16 comprises an elongated base portion 24 having a flat bottom face2S with a planar top face 26 a short distance thereabove. As will bepointed out below, it is intended that, in some applications stock bereceived on top of the face 26 of the base portion 24. Accordingly,edges 27, 28 and 29 of the base portion 24 are tapered upwardly tofacilitate this.

At its end 30 the base portion 24 is provided with a generallyrectangular upstanding portion 33 which terminates in an upper edge 34.The upstanding portion has a first abutment wall 35 which extends at aright angle to the bottom face 25 from the edge thereof. The abutmentwall 35 receives in engagement therewith the stock 11 when the Idiepress stop is oriented as in the case of die press stops 16 and 17, inFIGURE l.

On the opposite side of the upstanding portion 33 is an abutment wall 36which i-s parallel to the wall 35. As will be explained below the wall36 engages the edge of the stock when the die press stop is used as thedie press stops 12 and 13 in FIGURE l. Adjoining walls 37 and 38 jointhe respective edges of the walls 35 and 36.

The die press stop 16 also comprises a cap` 40 which will be discussedin detail below. This cap 40 cooperates with the upstanding portion 33of the stop so as to be adjustable up and down. To this end arectangular cavity 41 is provided in the upstanding portion 33 and has apair of parallel opposed walls 42 therein extending parallel to thewalls 35 and 36. As can best be seen in FIGURE 2 a pair of opposed walls43 join the respective edges of the aforementioned walls 42. It shouldbe noted that the walls 43 converge downwardly for a purpose which willbe described.

Turning now to the cap 40 in more detail, it includes a flat, squarehead 47 which substantially as wide as the walls 35 and 36. However, thecap 40 is dimensioned so that it will overhang the walls 35 and 36 toprovide lips or shoulders 48 and 49 respectively. Made with thisarrangement the lip 48 will limit the movement of the stock 11 away fromthe platen 10. Similarly the lip 49 will limit such movement of anystock abutting the wall 36. In FIGURE 3 phantom line 50 is provided toillustrate such stock.

Depending from the head 47 of the cap 46 is a pair of somewhat flexiblelegs 51. These legs are dimensioned so that they may be received intothe mouth of the cavity 41. Accordingly, as the cap 4t) is forceddownwardly, the aforementioned converging walls 4,3` bend the legs 51inwardly. Because of this arrangement, the cap 40 may be selectivelypositioned at its lowest position such as shown in full lines in theFIGURES 2 or raised to the position shown in phantom lines in FIGURE 2.In each case the friction between the legs 51 and the converging walls43 hold the `cap 40 in the desired position. This enables the presentdie press stop to accommodate Very thick stock or several layers ofstock.

Another feature of our invention is the manner in which the die pressstop may be quickly anchored to the platen 1G. To this end the bottomface 2S is coated with a contact adhesive or cement 53. Prior to use thecontact cement S3 is covered by a protective .paper 54 which is eitherwax coated or has a very hard nish in order that it may be removedeasily.

At the time it is desired to apply the die press stop to the platen, thepaper 54, which comes in two sections, is peeled off by pulling saidpaper in the direction of arrows SS. (See FIGURE 4.)

The versatility of die press stops according to the pres ent inventionis readily seen. For example, in addition to the manner in which diepress stop 16 is used, the stop can be used as in the case of stop 12 or13. ln this case the stop can be anchored to the platen at such aposition that the stop actually extends beyond the edge of the platen.This enables the platen to accommodate larger sized stock.

Additionally the cap 40 can be positioned up or down in accordance withthe demands of the particular job, or it can he completely removed as inthe case of die press stop 17 and still accomplish its intendedfunction. In the case of die lpress stop 17 it is necessary that thecutting die cut the stock 11 so closeto the stop that the die would hitthe cap if it had not been removed.

Another feature of the present invention is the manner in which it lendsitself to being economically produced of plastic. When forming plasticsit is essential that all cross-sections be realtively thin in order toavoid warping of the final molded product. Accordingly the cavity 41 notonly functions to cooperate with the legs S1 of the cap 40 but reducesthe effective cross-section of the upstanding portion 33.

While only one embodiment of our invention has been shown and describedin detail it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that such isby way of illustration only, and numerous changes can be made theretowithout departing from the spirit of the present invention. Accord*ingly, the invention is to be limited solely by the scope of theappended claims.

We claim:

1. The die press stop for use in cutting, creasing or otherwiseprocessing stock, said stop comprising:

a generally horizontal base, said base being relatively dat with a datbottom surface and having tapering side walls except at one end;

means on the bottom of said base for anchoring said stop to a platen ofa press;

an upstanding portion at said one end of said base, said upstandingportion and one end presenting a vertical wall at said one end of saidbase adapted to engage the edge of the stock, said wall extending abovethe top of the base a substantial distance;

a lip projecting laterally from the upper edge of said vertical walladapted to engage the upper side of the stock to limit the movementthereof away from the press platen.

2. A die press stop comprising:

a generally horizontal base, a flat bottom surface and having upwardlytapering side walls except at one end;

an upstanding portion at said one end of said base, said portion havinga vertical wall extending up from the edge of said base and an oppositewall, said opposite wall being vertical;

a cap, said cap projecting laterally beyond said walls of saidupstanding portion; holding means on the upstanding means; and

means on said cap cooperating with said holding means on said upstandingportion for adjustably holding said cap in a selected position relativeto said base.

3. The die press stop set forth in claim 2, wherein a female cavity isformed in one of said upstanding portion end cap and a maie holdingmeans is formed on the other, said male holding means engaging the wallsof said cavity to frictionally hold the parts together.

4. A die press stop comprising:

an elongated base having a flat bottom surface;

an opstanding portion at one end thereof, said opstanding portion havinga vertical wall extending at a right angle to said bottom, saidupstanding portion having a second vertical wail opposite said rstmentioned wall upstanding from the top of said base at a pointintermediate the ends of said base; a removable cap; and

means on said upstanding portion for receiving and holding saidremovable cap at the top of said upstanding'portion.

5. A die press stop comprising:

a base;

an opstanding portion at one edge of said base;

a cavity formed in said upstanding portion, said cavity having twoopposed walis converging downwardly;

a cap above said opstanding portion, said cap having a .pair ofdepending flexible legs extending downwardly into said cavity and beingengaged and slightly deflected by said cavity walls, said cap projectinghorizontally beyond said upstanding portion, whereby said cap may beadjusted up and down relative to said upstanding portion.

6. The die press stolp set forth in claim 5 including means carried bysaid base for anchoring the stop to a press platen.

'7. The die press stop set forth in claim 6 wherein said last mentionedmeans comprises contact cement applied to the bottom of said base.

8. The die press stop forth in claim wherein a thin sheet of materialremovably covers said contact cement.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 967,287 8/1910Zaun 144-306 1,555,960 10/1925 Fuller. 1,569,236 1/1926 Puterbaugh144-307 1,631,428 6/1927 Olson 144-307 2,008,019 7/1935 Horlick 24-6712,266,852 12/ 1941 Cunningham 248--361 2,385,296 9/1945 Moore.

2,489,477 11/1949 Brecler 24S- 361 X 2,765,998 1i0/1956 Engert 248--205X FOREIGN VPATENTS 599,823 3/ 1948 Great Britain.

WILLAM W. DYER, IR., Primary Examiner.

BROUGHTGN G. DURHAM, ROBERT C. RIORDON,

Examiners.

1. THE DIE PRESS STOP FOR USE IN CUTTING, CREASING OR OTHERWISEPROCESSING STOCK, SAID STOP COMPRISING: A GENERALLY HORIZONTAL BASE,SAID BASE BEING RELATIVELY FLAT WITH A FLAT BOTTOM SURFACE AND HAVINGTAPERING SIDE WALLS EXCEPT AT ONE END; MEANS ON THE BOTTOM OF SAID BASEFOR ANCHORING SAID STOP TO A PLATEN OF A PRESS; AN UPSTANDING PORTION ATSAID ONE END OF SAID BASE, SAID UPSTANDING PORTION AND ONE ENDPRESENTING A VERTICAL WALL AT SAID ONE END OF SAID BASE ADAPTED TOENGAGE THE EDGE OF THE STOCK, SAID WALL EXTENDING ABOVE THE TOP OF THEBASE A SUBSTANTIAL DISTANCE; A LIP PROJECTING LATERALLY FROM THE UPPEREDGE OF SAID VERTICAL WALL ADAPTED TO ENGAGE THE UPPER SIDE OF THE STOCKTO LIMIT THE MOVEMENT THEREOF AWAY FROM THE PRESS PLATEN.